Page 159 of Slaughter

He whimpers. There’s not much more he can do than that. Bunny had him screaming for hours. He lost his voice long ago.

I open it, grabbing the red and yellow can. I remove the straw and shake it up before screwing the straw to the top, securing it. Then go to stand in front of him. He lifts his heavy head to look me in the eyes. He smells of death, so he’s not far from it. Blood runs from the skin Bunny removed after branding him. She did a hack job, that’s for sure. Some places on his forearms are down to the bone. He probably doesn’t even feel them anymore due to her severing nerves. “You’re about to die.” I sigh. “Maybe ten minutes at the most.”

He drops his head unable to hold it up any longer. “I wish I could have drawn it out longer. But this was Bunny’s show.” I would have done things differently, but it wasn’t my decision. Not my revenge to take.

“But …” I take a step closer to him and grip his chin, pushing his head up. “I have a gorgeous woman in my bed waiting on me, and I don’t want to wait another minute for your pathetic ass to die.” I growl. “I wanna watch you take your last fucking breath, Preston. So, open up.” I begin to pry his mouth open with my hand, and he tries to pull away, but he’s too weak. I dig my fingers into his cheeks and push his head into the concrete wall to help keep him in place. Then I shake the can in my right hand before lifting it to his lips. I place the long straw to the back of his throat, and he starts to gag. I push the button. Foam begins to fill his mouth and throat. His head tries to fight me, and he pulls on his restraints to no avail. I fill his mouth completely. Then I shove the straw into his nose and fill his nostrils.

I take a step back. He thrashes, and his eyes widen as the foam starts to expand, cutting off his air. And I watch the life drain out of him like the piece of shit he is. I tap the side of his face a couple of times, and say, “Go to hell, Preston. And tell your father I said hello.”

I smile satisfied and go back over to the safe. I place the foam sealant that is supposed to fix cracked ceilings and walls away and then walk over to the door. I turn off the light and shut the door. As I walk to my room, I pass Kayn.

“I’ll take care of him, sir,” he says, knowing where I just came from.

“It can wait until later,” I tell him and enter my room. I undress, then crawl into bed next to Bunny. My hand immediately goes underneath the covers, and I find her naked. She begins to stir when I slide my hand between her thighs to cup her pussy. “I need you,” I tell her.

She gives me a soft smile, eyes still closed, and says, “I’ve been waiting.”

EPILOGUE

AVERY

“TAKE THE NEXT RIGHT,” MY brother informs me as I drive down the New York highway. Bunny and I have been visiting him for the last two weeks. She spends all of her time with Chloe and Alex, and none of them argue with me when I make Kayn escort them.

“She’s calling you again.” He holds up my phone in his hand, and I glance over at it to see Bunny light up my screen. I hit answer. “Hey, Bunny,” I call out into my speakers as the Bluetooth picks it up.

“Where are you?” she asks in her sweet voice.

I dodge her question. “Are you back at Tristan’s?”

“No.” She sighs. “We are at some Halloween store looking for costumes.” She gets quiet for a second. “Can we come back for Halloween? Chloe and Alex have made plans to go out. And I really wanna go.”

“Of course,” I answer although I hate New York.

“Thanks, babe.” Her voice has changed to excitement. “I’ll see you back at Tristan’s. Love you.”

Click.

She hangs up before I can even respond.

My brother begins to laugh. “Shut up,” I order before he has the chance to say anything. He knows that I would do anything that woman wants. Thankfully, he keeps his mouth shut.

I see my exit coming up and jump off the highway. Going ten over the speed limit, I take the curves faster than I should.

“It’s up ahead.”

It comes into view, and I slow down. The house sits on ten acres back off the road. I see a black Corvette parked in the driveway, and I smile. The bastard is here.

I pull into the driveway like I’m expected and get out, my gun tucked in the back of my slacks. Tristan and I make our way around to the back of the house and use the key that Kayn gave me. That guy can get anything anywhere. I unlock the door and step in. There’s soft piano music playing, and I smile because that could be an advantage.

My brother falls behind me, allowing me to take the lead, knowing I can handle it. He just came along because he didn’t wanna go shopping with the girls.

A voice comes from down the hall, and I follow it. Pulling my gun out of my pocket, I also grab the silencer out of the other and screw it on. My brother pulls his out to be ready just in case. Cocking mine slowly, I raise it. As I step into a kitchen, the man comes into view. He stands in front of the burner, his back facing me, flipping pancakes. He picks them up with the spatula and plops them down on a plate. He turns around but gasps when he finds me and my brother standing in front of him. “Who the hell are you?” he demands.

I place the gun under his chin and speak. “The real question is, what did you do to deserve this?” Then I pull the trigger. He drops the plate, and it shatters before he falls to his knees, then face down.

I kneel, place the gun in his hand, and then we turn around and leave, not even bothering to turn off the stove. If the house catches on fire, then it was meant to be. I remove my gloves, and we walk outside and jump in my car. There will be signs that it wasn’t a suicide. Like the fact he dropped a plate of pancakes and no suicide letter to explain his decision. Or someone might have seen my car. But the police will never place me here because I have no connection to the man. And the gun is untraceable. I can make that possible in my line of work.

The love of my life was once a patient of his. She went to him for help, and all he did was make her feel like it was all her fault. After doing some research on the man, I found he had assault charges while in college. He had money to have it hidden well but not good enough. The man preyed on women who were already victims—too afraid they had no voice—so I did society a favor. If he had taken care of Bunny, I would have spared his life, but no one seemed to have done that. That’s why I got a list, and I’m going name by name until they are all dead.

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